This vintage book contains John Meade Falkner's 1895 novella, "The Lost Stradivarius". When a young wealthy man discovers a violin in a secret compartment of a college dorm, he becomes strangely reclusive and obsessed with a mysterious piece of music, roaming throughout England and Italy haunted by the ghost of the violin's previous owner. John Meade Falkner (1858–1932) was an English novelist and poet best known for his 1898 novel, “Moonfleet”. As well as being an accomplished writer, Falkner was also a successful businessman, becoming chairman of the weapons manufacturer Armstrong Whitworth in the First World War.
"The Lost Stradivarius" by John Meade Falkner is a short novel of ghosts and the evil that can be invested in an object. In this case, a Stradivarius violin is the haunted item in question. After finding the violin of the title in a hidden compartment in his college room, a wealthy young heir, becomes increasingly secretive as well as obsessed by a particular piece of music which summons the ghost of its previous owner.
The spellbinding memoir of a violin virtuoso who loses the instrument that had defined her both on stage and off -- and who discovers, beyond the violin, the music of her own voice Her first violin was tiny, harsh, factory-made; her first piece was “Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star.” But from the very beginning, Min Kym knew that music was the element in which she could swim and dive and soar. At seven years old, she was a prodigy, the youngest ever student at the famed Purcell School. At eleven, she won her first international prize; at eighteen, violinist great Ruggiero Ricci called her “the most talented violinist I’ve ever taught.” And at twenty-one, she found “the one,” the violin she would play as a soloist: a rare 1696 Stradivarius. Her career took off. She recorded the Brahms concerto and a world tour was planned. Then, in a London café, her violin was stolen. She felt as though she had lost her soulmate, and with it her sense of who she was. Overnight she became unable to play or function, stunned into silence. In this lucid and transfixing memoir, Kym reckons with the space left by her violin’s absence. She sees with new eyes her past as a child prodigy, with its isolation and crushing expectations; her combustible relationships with teachers and with a domineering boyfriend; and her navigation of two very different worlds, her traditional Korean family and her music. And in the stark yet clarifying light of her loss, she rediscovers her voice and herself.
GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK! • Ray McMillian is a Black classical musician on the rise—undeterred by the pressure and prejudice of the classical music world—when a shocking theft sends him on a desperate quest to recover his great-great-grandfather’s heirloom violin on the eve of the most prestigious musical competition in the world. “I loved The Violin Conspiracy for exactly the same reasons I loved The Queen’s Gambit: a surprising, beautifully rendered underdog hero I cared about deeply and a fascinating, cutthroat world I knew nothing about—in this case, classical music.” —Chris Bohjalian, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant and Hour of the Witch Growing up Black in rural North Carolina, Ray McMillian’s life is already mapped out. But Ray has a gift and a dream—he’s determined to become a world-class professional violinist, and nothing will stand in his way. Not his mother, who wants him to stop making such a racket; not the fact that he can’t afford a violin suitable to his talents; not even the racism inherent in the world of classical music. When he discovers that his beat-up, family fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, all his dreams suddenly seem within reach, and together, Ray and his violin take the world by storm. But on the eve of the renowned and cutthroat Tchaikovsky Competition—the Olympics of classical music—the violin is stolen, a ransom note for five million dollars left in its place. Without it, Ray feels like he's lost a piece of himself. As the competition approaches, Ray must not only reclaim his precious violin, but prove to himself—and the world—that no matter the outcome, there has always been a truly great musician within him.
“’Tis God gives skill, but not without men’s hands: He could not make Antonio Stradivari’s violins without Antonio.” –George Eliot Antonio Stradivari (1644—1737) was a perfectionist whose single-minded pursuit of excellence changed the world of music. In the course of his long career in the northern Italian city of Cremona, he created more than a thousand stringed instruments; approximately six hundred survive. In this fascinating book, Toby Faber traces the rich, multilayered stories of six of these peerless instruments–five violins and a cello–and the one towering artist who brought them into being. Blending history, biography, meticulous detective work, and an abiding passion for music, Faber embarks on an absorbing journey as he follows some of the most prized instruments of all time. Mysteries and unanswered questions proliferate from the outset–starting with the enigma of Antonio Stradivari himself. What made this apparently unsophisticated craftsman so special? Why were his techniques not maintained by his successors? How is it that even two and a half centuries after his death, no one has succeeded in matching the purity, depth, and delicacy of a Stradivarius? In Faber’s illuminating narrative, each of the six fabled instruments becomes a character in its own right–a living entity cherished by artists, bought and sold by princes and plutocrats, coveted, collected, hidden, lost, copied, and occasionally played by a musician whose skill matches its maker’s. Here is the fabulous Viotti, named for the virtuoso who enchanted all Paris in the 1780s, only to fall foul of the French Revolution. Paganini supposedly made a pact with the devil to transform the art of the violin–and by the end of his life he owned eleven Strads. Then there’s the Davidov cello, fashioned in 1712 and lovingly handed down through a succession of celebrated artists until, in the 1980s, it passed into the capable hands of Yo-Yo Ma. From the salons of Vienna to the concert halls of New York, from the breakthroughs of Beethoven’s last quartets to the first phonographic recordings, Faber unfolds a narrative magnificent in its range and brilliant in its detail. “A great violin is alive,” said Yehudi Menuhin of his own Stradivarius. In the pages of this book, Faber invites us to share the life, the passion, the intrigue, and the incomparable beauty of the world’s most marvelous stringed instruments.
This vintage book contains the complete novels of J. Meade Falkner including “Moonfleet”, “The Lost Stradivarius”, and “The Nebuly Coat”. These fantastic novels will appeal to all fiction lovers and constitute must-reads for fans and collectors of Falkner's wonderful work. “Moonfleet” - The titillating tale of smuggling, treasure, and shipwreck set in 18th century England. "The Lost Stradivarius" - When a young wealthy man discovers a violin in a secret compartment of a college dorm, he becomes strangely reclusive and obsessed with a mysterious piece of music, roaming throughout England and Italy haunted by the ghost of the violin's previous owner. “The Nebuly Coat” - A suspense novel that tells the story of Edward Westray, a young architect overseeing the restoration of Cullerne Minister. He finds himself caught up in Cullerne life, and hears rumours about a mystery surrounding the claim to the title of Lord Blandamer. John Meade Falkner (1858–1932) was an English novelist and poet best known for his 1898 novel, “Moonfleet”. As well as being an accomplished writer, Falkner was also a successful businessman, becoming chairman of the weapons manufacturer Armstrong Whitworth in the First World War.
Three brilliant novels of mystery and adventure in one special edition John Meade Falkner was not a full time professional writer. In fact, during the First World War he became chairman of Armstrong Whitworth, the huge British arms manufacturer responsible for the construction of airplanes, cars, ships and more. Although he wrote some non-fiction (mostly travel guides), Falkner is primarily remembered for his classic of adventure fiction, the often dramatised 'Moonfleet'. Set in mid-eighteenth century England, the novel is a grippingly told smuggling tale that is now regarded as a classic. 'Moonfleet' is joined in this unique Leonaur edition by Falkner's two other novels. Aficionados of the ghostly tale will find much to reward them in the pages of the 'Lost Stradivarius'. Lauded as the novel that could potentially have been written by the master of the literary supernatural short story, M.R. James, the plot centres around the violin of the title which is said to conjure the spirit of its former owner. 'The Nebuly Coat' is another gripping mystery set in Dorset, in which young architect Edward Westray, the principal character, must unravel the secrets of the suspicious Blandamers, whose coat of arms features the 'nebuly'-a distinctive heraldic band device. This three-in-one Leonaur edition provides an excellent opportunity for both enthusiasts and newcomers to Falkner's work to read or reread his highly regarded novels in a single satisfying and substantial volume. Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket; our hardbacks are cloth bound and feature gold foil lettering on their spines and fabric head and tail bands.
Settle in for a juicy and well-wrought historical mystery in J. Meade Falkner's The Nebuly Coat. Edward Westray, a young architect, is dispatched to a remote village in southwest England to work on a complex restoration project. In the course of his work, he learns about a vast inheritance that has as yet gone unclaimed. When the purported heir makes an appearance, Westray has his doubts. Is his suspicion merited? Read The Nebuly Coat to find out.
